One of your first tasks as a new CEO, is to gain the trust of your leadership team.
In your first speech, you need to let your team know what you expect from them, and what they can expect from you.
As a new CEO, you may have been appointed by a board of directors, to turn around an organization. To do this, you need the support of your management team. This team is used to working with the previous CEO, who may be different to you.
As a new CEO, you need to let your leadership team know what you expect from them, and what they can expect from you.
The easiest way to do this, is to deliver a carefully crafted speech in your first meeting with your management team.
Some of the team members may have flourished under the previous CEO, and may be filled with apprehension about your appointment. Other members of the team may have suffered under the leadership of the previous CEO, and may be looking forward to working with someone with a different leadership style. All of your team members are wondering:
If you fail to answer these questions during your first meeting with your team, they will try to figure out your expectations themselves. They will interpret your intentions from your actions, your lack of actions or your body language.
They will waste a great amount of time trying to 'work you out' as they interpret or misinterpret your motives from what you do or say. They will then spend even more time comparing what they think you are about, with other members of the team.
Use your first meeting with your management team, to clarify expectations. This will help you to:
1. Why did you accept the position of new CEO of this organization?
2. How do you want your leadership team to behave?
3. The behaviours you expect from your team.
4. The behaviours you will not tolerate.
5. What your leadership team can expect from you.
There are some people who always get the best out of you as a leader. How do they behave towards you that brings out your best side?
How do you like to support people who 'bring the best out of you? How do you support them in terms of:
What can your team expect from you as their leader?
What can they not expect from you as their leader?
Your speech should contain the following content: Use the answers you gave to the questions listed above to fill in the detail.
Introduction
The purpose of your introduction is to let your team know that you respect them and the organization. In your introduction you should:
Who you are and what is important to you.
Provide a few details about yourself. How past experiences in your life or work have shaped your values. For example:
Then talk a bit about what is important to you. Your values. Examples could include:
What you as CEO, expect from your leadership team.
Use the answers you gave to questions 2 and 3. List the five most important behaviours you expect from your team. Examples could include:
What is unacceptable to you.
Use the answers you gave to question 4. List up to 5 behaviours that frustrate you most, that you don't want to see happening in this team. Examples could include:
What your team can expect from you.
Use the answers you gave to question 5. List how you will support your team.
Examples could include:
The challenges you and your team face over the next 12 months.
Use your answers to question 1 here.
Examples could include:
How we will work together to achieve these challenges.
I intend to meet each of you individually in order to:
I will also meet with our customers order to:
I will meet with our suppliers to find out:
Then as a team we will get together and craft:
End your presentation in a way that inspires you team.
Provide a statement that shows the confidence you have in the team:
State how you look forward to working together with the team.
e.g. A statement from Tim Cook of Apple:
"I am confident our best years lie ahead of us, and that together we will continue to make Apple the magical place that it is."
Remember that you want your team to leave the first meeting feeling excited about the challenges ahead, and working together with you to achieve something great.
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